California Mugwort (Artemisia douglasiana) is a California native in the sunflower family, donated by our friend, John.
From UCSC Arboretum Ethnobotany Native American Uses of California Plants:
Artemisia douglasiana California Mugwort, Douglas’s Sagewort. Sunflower Family (Asteraceae) California Mugwort is an erect and aromatic plant, growing to be three to seven feet, with small, inconspicuous flowers that form terminal clusters.
It has been used medicinally and ceremonially for thousands of years around the world, and the plant has been prized for its calming, sage-like scent. The Paiute people used California Mugwort ceremoniously as a wash when coming out of ritual dances. Some considered mugwort to be a magic plant, and Chumash, Paiute, and other California Indian tribes burned or inhaled smoke from the leaves to promote healthy sleep, sacred dreams, and to ward of ghosts or evil spirits.
California Indians burned mugwort and inhaled the smoke to treat flu, colds, and fevers, and the Chumash chewed the leaves to relieve tooth aches and gum pain. The leaves, dried, fresh, or burned, were used as an insect repellent and were placed in food storage containers to keep pests away. A tea of the plant was used to relieve asthma, rheumatism, gastric ailments and stomachaches, and urinary problems.
It can be especially useful as a treatment for women’s ailments such as premenstrual syndrome, painful menstruation, difficult childbirth, and menopause, however due to its powerful effects, should not be taken when pregnant. The fresh leaves have been used to treat and prevent poison oak inflammations.
Mugwort contains a compound called thujone which is said to induce hallucinations and convulsions. When mugwort is smoked or taken as a tea, very little thujone is present. However, extracts of mugwort made with alcohol are (generally) not recommended, as they can be too concentrated and potentially dangerous.
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| Artemisia douglasiana |
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